By Robert D. Bailey, December 12, 2018 — Today should be one of the better days of my life. A warm sunny day in December is now not so unusual for Philadelphia winter, especially before the January/ February hard freeze. Still, the last several weeks have been unusually dreary and there were two nuisance snow flurries which was somewhat out of the ordinary.
Being a warm-weather person, a day such as today should evoke outdoor activities; washing my car by hand with soapy water and a sponge and a hose would be a selfish delight. It’s a divulgence I reserve for the Spring and Summer. Yet today, I could hardly get out of bed.
It is maddening to me to be a History buff and have to endure the cruel lessons of history over and over and over again. It would be a best day of my life if poor, victimized beaten-down white folks would realize that they are poor, beaten-down white folks.
I believe it was Gil Scott-Heron or if not, one such witty sage who said, “The hardest thing is convince white folks “today is today.” A basket of deplorables is too severe. I am dilettante of history and my “think before” analogy is reminiscent of the Confederate Army. My reading list has led me to say, if you can fight for the Confederate Army, you are capable of any and all self-destructive behavior at the whim of the powers that be.
If white folks could look beyond valid appeals to bigotry, sexism, patriarchy and class elitism and focus on the little quality of life things like dental work for their children; there would be no Ronald Reagan, George Bush, impudent Bill Clinton and Obama, no Donald Trump and definitely no tax bill. That will be the last nail in the coffin of the middle class.